Olawale Ajimotokan in Abuja
The International Press Institute (IPI), the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE), and the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) have accused the Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA) headed by Major Gen Emmanuel Undiandeye of secretly planning to elimination the Editor of FirstNews, Mr. Segun Olatunji, who was released yesterday after spending 12 days in DIA cell.
At a press briefing addressed yesterday in Abuja by the President of NUJ, Chris Isiguzo; Secretary of NGE, Iyobosa Uwugiaren, and President, IPI Nigeria, Musikilu Mojeed, they said DIA’s action made them suspicious that they planned to secretly eliminate Olatunji so that members of the public could attribute his disappearance to suspected gunmen.
They described DIA action as vicious, uncivilized, unlawful, criminal, unacceptable and alien to Nigeria’s democratic space, saying it was now clear that there were some officers in the military who were still finding it difficult to subject themselves to civil authority 24 years after the country returned to representative governance.
According to them, “We do not think this kind of attitude should be condoned by President Bola Tinubu, particularly, and Nigerians in general. If officers in a military institution like DIA could hack a journalist’s telephone, mishandle his wife, abduct him, detain him secretly for 12 days and disobey senior officials of the federal government, then our democracy cannot be said to be safe.
“Although our colleague has now been released, we are calling on President Tinubu to ensure that these officers are punished for their bad behaviour. By all standards, the actions of the DIA, General Musa and Major General Undiandeye are against the provisions of Nigeria’s 1999 Constitution and other international instruments to which Nigeria is a signatory – which forbid the detention of any citizen or resident beyond 48 hours, except with a valid court order.
“Moreover, the DIA’s action is a direct attack on press freedom. One of the core missions of the free press is to serve as a watchdog on power. The press, as we all know, is the connection between the people and the government. If the press is not allowed to carry out its social and constitutional responsibilities but instead obligated to power, it simply serves as an extension of power. Without freedom of the press, our democracy is endangered. In the case of corruption, a free press is critical to exposing abuses of power. For sure, the media is not above the law, but in a democracy, the only way to determine wrong or right is through the legal process.”
IPI, NUJ and NGE vowed that the release of Olatunji was not the end of the matter as the Nigerian media community planned to consult further in the next few days on the actions to take against the CDS, the CDI and the military regarding the matter.
Olatunji was abducted by soldiers in Lagos on March 15 in the presence of his 10-year-old son over a recent story published by the media organisation titled: ‘Revealed: Defence Chief running office like family business’.
He said he was arrested and blindfolded by soldiers, who came in three vehicles. He was flown to Abuja and kept incommunicado and shackled in DIA detention cell.
“I will like to say that given the event since my abduction by intelligence agency, I want to say that my life is not safe because they have everything about me. They know my house; they would have arrested me in my home town on March 8. I went for an ICT programme by Senator Yayi and they would have arrested me there because one of them told me how they had been trailing me. They told me how I entered the NUJ bus in my home town and I how alighted at Olomore in Abeokuta and the particular time l alighted. They told me and said they were watching me. Actually, what I later learnt was that they had been trailing me truly may be for about two to three weeks,” Olatunji said.
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